FAQ

• What does sustainability mean for the City of Eagan?
• Sustainability in Eagan means meeting today’s environmental, social, and economic needs without compromising future generations. It includes efforts to reduce emissions, protect natural resources, and create a resilient, healthy community for all.
• What has Eagan done to support sustainability?
• Over the past 15 years, Eagan has taken many important steps:
  • Installed geothermal systems at key city buildings
  • Streamlined solar permitting for homes and businesses
  • Enrolled all city facilities in 100% renewable wind energy for electricity
  • Added community solar subscription for the Eagan Community Center
  • Designed the new Eagan Art House to be 100% electric and fossil-fuel-free
  • Adopted Eagan’s first Climate Action Plan in 2025
• Where can I find information about recycling and composting?
• Recycling and composting are overseen at the county level:
  • Dakota Valley Recycling
  • Dakota County’s Food Scraps and Composting Info
• What is a Climate Action Plan?
• The climate action plan serves as a roadmap to guide the city's efforts in addressing the anticipated impacts of climate change. Eagan’s climate action plan focuses on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, achieving net-zero emissions, and building resilience through adaptation and mitigation techniques.
• Why is the city focusing on Climate Action?
• Through community surveys, residents have identified that they care deeply about green spaces and climate change. Eight in 10 people surveyed view climate change as a threat, and 79% have personally been affected by it. We’re focusing on action to address these concerns.
• How will the climate action plan be implemented?
• Eagan will develop a CAP implementation team with staff from key departments to identify, implement, and track priority actions and progress. The plan will be broken down into two-year implementation cycles focusing on a set of target actions for each cycle. Additionally, each cycle will ensure that priority areas align with city initiatives, ongoing work, and budget planning.
• What does it mean to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
• Greenhouse gases are gases that contribute to climate change. These gases come from various sources, but in Minnesota, the biggest emitters of these gases are the transportation, energy, and agricultural sectors.
  
  To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the city, along with community members, will work together to reduce our contribution to these gases. This can be achieved through the adoption of renewable energy resources, implementing energy conservation measures, upgrading to energy-efficient appliances, transitioning to electric and hybrid vehicles, and weatherizing buildings, among other measures.
• What does it mean to achieve net-zero emissions?
• Achieving net-zero emissions means that Eagan as a community is not putting more greenhouse gas emissions into the air than we are removing.
• How will the city update community members on the progress of the plan?
• The city will create and update a dashboard of the CAP, allowing community members to track the progress of all actions and goals outlined in the plan. This dashboard will be updated every two years in line with the cap implementation cycle.
• How will the climate action plan complement other City Plans?
• Climate Action is a multi-layered issue that will impact various parts and sectors of the city. Due to this, the CAP was developed with other city plans in mind and, in certain places, connects and or builds upon ongoing efforts of other plans. Some of these plans are listed below:
  • 2040 Comprehensive Guide Plan
  • 2040 Transportation Plan Update
  • Bike and Pedestrian Transportation Master Plan
  • Park System Master Plan
  • Integrated Water Master Plan
  • GreenStep Cities

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